AP PhotoCleveland Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera jumps away from Detroit Tigers' Don Kelly (32), while watching his throw to first to complete the double play on Alex Avila during the fifth inning in Detroit.

It's the Tigers' second straight loss to the lowly Indians, who entered the series losers in 16 of their last 18 games. Detroit entered the series in a first-place tie with the White Sox after completing a three-game sweep against Chicago this past weekend.

KEY TO THE GAME

Tough to point the finger at Porcello. He went 5 2/3 innings, giving up three runs on eight hits. It certainly wasn't a breathtaking start, but it was strong enough to keep the game close.

The Tigers stranded only four runners, but that's largely because they had trouble putting runners on base. Cleveland right-hander Justin Masterson gave up only two runs on four hits and four Indians relievers combined to pitch three hitless innings.

TIGERS' HIGHLIGHTS

-- With 27 games remaining, scoreboard watching is in full effect. The Tigers suffered their second straight loss, but the White Sox couldn't build on their one-game lead as they lost to Minnesota, 18-9.

-- Right-hander Al Alburquerque made his season debut with the Tigers in the seventh -- and did what he does best. With runners on first and second with two outs, Alburquerque struck out Russ Canzler with a nasty slider to prevent the Indians from tacking on any add-on runs.

-- With Andy Dirks on first base, Miguel Cabrera sent a two-out, first-pitch breaking ball over the left-field wall in the sixth inning to cut the Indians' 3-0 lead to one. Cabrera's hit was the club's first since Avila's third-inning double.

-- Dirks robbed Brantley of a should-be RBI when he laid out with two outs in the fifth inning and made a run-saving catch to strand runners on first and third. The Web Gem-like catch prevented Cleveland from building on its 3-0 lead.

TIGERS' LOWLIGHTS

-- For the fourth straight start, Porcello wasn't rewarded with a single run of support from his teammates. He's now thrown three or fewer runs in his past four starts. His reward? No wins.

-- Detroit mounted a two-out rally in the seventh when Jhonny Peralta reached base on Jack Hannahan's throwing error and Joe Smith hit Alex Avila with a pitch. But the rally fell flat after Omar Infante batted into an inning-ending fielder's choice.

-- Tigers manager Jim Leyland came out to argue a call in the third inning after Asdrubal Cabrera's ground-rule double with one out scored Shin-Soo Choo to give the Indians a three-run lead. It's possible Leyland was asking first-base umpire James Hoye whether the grounder was fair or foul. The play never went to video review.

-- The Indians are the lone team in the AL Central with a winning record against the Tigers. Following Tuesday's win, Cleveland is 9-5 against Detroit.

OTHER KEYS

-- Eyebrows were raised when Leyland sat Delmon Young, considered arguably the team's hottest hitter, and started Don Kelly at first base. Of the four hits registered, Kelly had one -- an infield grounder that he beat out in the fifth.

-- The 27,729 in attendance Tuesday night 2qw the second-smallest crowd at Comerica Park this season. The smallest attendance this season? It occurred on April 10 when the Tigers drew 22,574 -- Porcello was on the mound again. The Tigers entered Tuesday averaging 34,728 fans per game. You know what that tells me? School is back.

-- With runners on first and second, Drew Smyly came on in relief of Porcello and struck out Choo to keep the score at 3-2. He opened the seventh with two strikeouts before issuing back-to-back walks, leading to his exit.

-- By his own admission, Alex Avila is in a slump. His entered Tuesday hitting .102 (5-for-49) since Aug. 12, dropping his batting average 24 points during that span. He responded by hitting a double in his first at-bat against Masterson. In his next at-bat, he grounded into an inning-ending double play.